Undergraduate Programs

Undergraduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

The Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs offers a certificate program in Urban Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The program is central to the college’s mission to provide academic and professional education, expertise, and research capabilities to enhance the quality of life in urban communities.

A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computerized database management system used for the capture, storage, retrieval, analysis, and display of spatial data. GIS is useful to every discipline that utilizes geographic data and is one of the most exciting and rapidly growing computer technologies.

GIS has spread widely into fields such as land use, transportation, utility management, emergency services, natural resource management, environment, demographics, public safety and public health, market and business location, housing, and real estate. With digital representation of spatial entities and their spatial relationships in GIS database, GIS are used to improve services, assist in managing resources, and provide support for better decision-making and policy-planning activities.

The certificate program offers a sequence of courses to professionals who wish to learn GIS technology to complement their careers in government, planning, environment, public works, and other urban agencies. The program provides a solid understanding of basic concepts, technical and institutional factors in GIS design and implementation, and applications of the technology to current issues of urban interest.

The program balances training in fundamental GIS concepts and theory, practical GIS-based problem-solving applications, and the development and completion of both independent and collaborative GIS projects.

Admission Information

Any student eligible to take undergraduate courses at Cleveland State University may enroll in the GIS courses on a space-availability basis. Students must have a B (3.0) average across all courses and earn a B in UST 487 to earn the certificate.

Certificate Requirements

The Undergraduate GIS Certificate Program consists of the following required four-credit courses:

UST 485: GIS Principles

UST 486: GIS Method

UST 487: GIS Applications

See the Course Descriptions section of the Undergraduate Catalog for further details.
It is strongly recommended that students take these classes in the order listed above.

Faculty

Urban Geographic Information Systems Certificate classes are taught by Cleveland State University faculty, researchers, instructors, and GIS professionals working in the region.